


Reason and Results

by carolinecrane



Series: Retrograde [15]
Category: CSI: Miami
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2004-02-22
Updated: 2004-02-22
Packaged: 2018-05-28 01:46:10
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,370
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6309472
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/carolinecrane/pseuds/carolinecrane
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The best way to get information is to ask questions.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Reason and Results

It's not like he didn't know how to cook before Tim. He learned how to boil water when he was a kid, and he could make macaroni and cheese and Rice-a-Roni and pretty much anything that came in a box with clearly printed instructions. His dad had taught him how to work the grill in some weird male bonding ritual when he was in junior high, but since Tim…now he can actually _cook_. Real food, not just the junk he survived on in college.

He can read a recipe now, and he knows he did okay tonight because Tim's eating. He likes being able to take care of Tim, even if it's just a hot meal at the end of a long day. If his mother ever heard him say that…forget his mother, if _Tim_ ever heard him say that he'd run so far and so fast Tyler wouldn't even notice until he was already gone. So he doesn't say it, just like he doesn't say a lot of the things that are guaranteed to freak Tim out.

That doesn't stop him from enjoying it, though, or wanting more of it. Sometimes he even thinks Tim enjoys it a little too – like tonight, when Tim called him instead of just staying home and brooding by himself. He hasn't mentioned his brother since he showed up, but that's not a surprise. The only real surprise is that he's here at all, and Tyler's not about to screw that up by pushing too hard for answers to the questions that have been nagging at him since he left Tim alone with his brother.

"You want a beer?" he asks as he stands up, crossing the small kitchen and reaching into the fridge for two bottles. When he straightens up again Tim's right behind him, setting his dish in the sink and reaching up to wipe absently at the corner of his mouth.

"Yeah, thanks," Tim answers when he turns to face Tyler. He reaches out when Tyler holds out a beer, but instead of taking the bottle he catches Tyler's wrist and pulls him close, fitting their mouths together and Tyler tastes Parmesan and pepper and Tim before he pulls away. "Thanks for dinner."

"My pleasure," Tyler says. He means every syllable and he can tell Tim knows it, because two bright spots of pink bloom on his cheeks as he clears his throat.

"I'm gonna go brush my teeth. Be right back."

Tyler nods as Tim turns away, waiting a second or two before he follows Tim out of the kitchen. He stops in the living room and sets the beers down on the coffee table, listening to the water turn on in the bathroom before he picks up the remote and turns on the TV. He finds the documentary he promised Tim and sets the remote down again, sprawling on the couch and tucking one arm behind his head.

He's already caught up in the program when Tim reappears, pausing in the doorway to look Tyler over before he crosses to the couch. "You look pretty comfortable. Sure you don't want me to go?"

Tyler shakes his head, grinning and catching Tim's hand to tug him down onto the couch. One knee lands on either side of his hips, and when Tim leans in to kiss him this time he tastes like Tyler's cinnamon toothpaste. He's moving slow, hands on either side of Tyler's head and Tyler slides his hands up Tim's back, tugging until he takes the hint and settles his weight on top of Tyler. He hums against Tim's mouth and pushes his fingers through Tim's hair, pushing one leg between Tim's and smiling against his mouth when he hears the muffled moan.

Tim pulls back to look at him, eyes dark for a second before he blinks and it's gone. Tyler wants to hold on even tighter, to kiss Tim until that look surfaces again, but he knows it won't work. He settles for smiling and pushing his hand through Tim's hair, down his neck to flatten against his chest. "So did you warn your brother about the evils of Spring Break in Miami?"

Tim flashes a lopsided grin and pushes himself up far enough to settle next to Tyler, his arm resting low on Tyler's stomach. "I tried. He didn't want to hear it."

"He's in college, right?"

"Yeah. He's a freshman at Syracuse University. Probably thinks he knows everything."

Tyler smiles and pushes back into Tim until he can feel his body heat through his clothes. "You went to Columbia, right?"

"Yeah. How…?"

"It's not like it's a big secret," Tyler answers, turning until they're face to face. He slides an arm around Tim's waist, hand pushing under his shirt to trace patterns against his skin. "I might have asked around a little."

For a second Tim just stares at him, and he wonders if maybe he wasn't supposed to know even that much. "It wasn't supposed to be a secret, was it?"

"No. You asked around about me?"

"Best way to get information is to ask questions, right?" Tyler grins when Tim laughs, hand moving in circles on the small of Tim's back. "I was in New York for awhile, you know. My first year out of high school I was at NYU."

"Yeah?" Tim says, not even bothering to hide his surprise. "When was that? '91?"

"'92," Tyler answers. "Took me a year to figure out the Broadway scene wasn't for me, and then I went home and finished college at the University of Minnesota. So I guess we were in the city at the same time, huh? You did a couple years of school before you dropped out, right?"

Another frown, and he thinks he might have said too much, but then Tim nods and slides a hand around the back of his neck. "Yeah. I guess you're wondering why I dropped out."

And he is – he's been wondering why since before they knew each other, but he's never asked. There are a lot of things he doesn't ask, but he's starting to think maybe he should. "If you want to tell me."

Tim's fingers are warm against his neck, pressing just hard enough to let Tyler know he's there. He nods, gaze fixed on Tyler's chest and he can tell how hard this is for Tim. "A friend of mine...he died. During surgery. It hit me pretty hard, you know? Med school kind of felt pointless after that."

Okay, so he wasn't expecting _that_ ; an existential crisis, maybe, or fallout from coming out to his folks. He'd never heard any rumors about a dead friend, though, and he couldn't help wondering if maybe the friend was more than a friend. "That must have been rough."

"It was a long time ago."

"So is that why you and your folks…"

Tim frowns and pulls back a little, shrugging and looking everywhere except at Tyler. "They weren't too happy when I took off. I saw a lot of the country before I ended up here – I bet I was in Minnesota at the same time as you."

He knows Tim's changing the subject, but he doesn't push it. Instead he shifts a little closer, sliding one leg over Tim's. "Yeah? It's too bad you didn't have a thing for skinny theater majors, we might have hooked up back then."

"I wasn't doing a lot of hooking up at the time."

"What about now?" Tyler asks, grinning hopefully when Tim laughs.

"Why, you know any skinny theater majors?"

Tim swallows his laugh with a kiss, pulling him impossibly closer on the narrow couch. He shifts, freeing his other arm just enough to trap it between them. Their limbs are tangled together so Tyler's not really sure anymore where he ends and Tim begins, and when Tim groans against his mouth and thrusts forward he almost falls off the couch. Tim catches him just before he falls, laughing against his neck and Tyler can't help grinning at the sound.

"Should we take this someplace more comfortable?"

"Yeah," Tim answers, voice rough and Tyler swallows a shudder and climbs off the couch, pausing long enough to turn off the TV before he pulls Tim toward the bedroom. When they reach the edge of the bed Tim stops him, catching him around the waist and pulling him close for another slow kiss. And it feels familiar, but there's something else there too. He doesn't let himself put a name to it – instead he focuses on peeling Tim's clothes off, breaking the kiss long enough to pull his shirt over his head.

Before his shirt even hits the floor Tim's pulling him close again, hands working his buttons open while his mouth maps a hot trail down the side of Tyler's neck. He pauses at every spot that makes Tyler tense against him, hands pushing his shirt over his shoulders and down to land on the floor next to his own. And he's always methodical about undressing Tyler, but this feels almost…reverent, hands mapping his skin as though Tim's trying to memorize him.

Slowly Tim peels the rest of their clothes off, pushing Tyler's hands gently out of the way when he tries to help. He doesn't put up a fight, and he doesn't argue when Tim pushes him back onto the mattress and climbs over him.

"I'm glad you called," Tyler says, grinning when Tim laughs. "Here I was planning to settle for a date with Sean."

Tim tenses against him and pulls back, fixing Tyler with that expression he usually reserves for really stupid suspects. "Who's Sean?"

"Sean Penn. He's on _Inside the Actors' Studio_ tonight."

He laughs when Tim rolls his eyes, leaning up to press a placating kiss against the corner of his mouth. Tim turns into the kiss, lips parting against Tyler's and his hips moving in a slow, steady rhythm. And he really is glad Tim called, but he has a feeling Tim already knows that. Just like he's pretty sure Tim knows exactly how he feels – another one of those things they don't talk about, but lately they've been talking about a lot of things he thought were off limits.

When Tim's mouth leaves his to trail down his neck he lets out a sigh, hand trailing through dark hair as Tim kisses his way down the center of Tyler's chest. He's taking his time, seeking out all the spots he knows make Tyler gasp and arch up hard against him, teasing a nipple and pressing a kiss to the inside of his elbow, sucking hard at his collarbone. By the time he reaches Tyler's mouth again they're both breathless, flushed and hard and he's arching up into the body pressing him into the mattress.

"Tim," he gasps, pressing against the other man's chest until Tim takes the hint and rolls onto his side. Tyler leans into him long enough to kiss him again, then he pushes himself onto his knees and reaches into the nightstand. He comes up with condoms and a half-full bottle of lube, dropping them on the mattress and letting Tim pull him forward again.

One last kiss and he turns in Tim's grip, knees spread and he leans back into solid heat when Tim's chest presses against his back. His mouth lands on Tyler's neck again, hands sliding down his back to land on his hips. He leans back into the touch, neck arched and he can tell Tim's determined to take this slow, but he doesn't want to wait.

"Tim," he says again, pressing back until Tim moans against his neck. "Please…"

Tim's mouth leaves his neck long enough to reach for the lube, and he hears foil rip as a condom wrapper opens. He lets Tim push him forward until his forehead's resting against the mattress, hears the sharp intake of breath behind him a second before slick fingers press inside. He groans and presses back into the touch, pulling Tim deeper until he's panting and gripping the sheets so tight his fingers ache.

He's so hard it hurts, and by the time Tim finally pulls his hand away Tyler's sure he's going to have to beg again. Not that he cares – he'll say whatever Tim wants to hear, but before he manages to say anything at all Tim's sliding inside him, moaning low in his throat when Tyler pushes back against him. He can hear the sound of his own voice, words like 'harder' and 'more' and even 'please' escaping his throat and he doesn't even care how he sounds.

Tim doesn't seem to care either, because he's gripping Tyler's hips hard enough to bruise, thrusting a little more wildly every time until finally he's tensing and moaning Tyler's name as he comes. He waits until Tim stops shaking to push himself up, leaning back against a sweat-slick chest and turning his head to press his lips to Tim's jaw. Tim's arms slide around his waist, his hand wrapping around Tyler's cock and he lets out a moan when Tim's hand begins to move.

A few quick strokes is all it takes before he's coming, wet heat against his chest and Tim presses hot kisses against his neck as he pants for breath. "You know," Tim murmurs against his skin, his voice laced with amusement, "there's probably still time for you to catch Sean."

Tyler laughs and leans a little more heavily against the body pressed against him, reaching down to thread his fingers through Tim's. "Sean who?"

"Good answer," Tim murmurs against his neck, tugging Tyler with him down onto the mattress. He rolls onto his back to look up at Tim, reaching out to push a few damp strands of hair away from the other man's forehead. "You want a shower?"

"In a minute," Tyler answers, leaning up to press their lips together again. And he's never going to get enough of this, but he's finally starting to think he might not have to worry about it. There are still a lot of questions to be answered, but Tim's trying, and that's all that matters to him.


End file.
